Horse abuser sentenced to time served

Published 9:39 pm, Monday, March 4, 2013

PROVIDENCE — Convicted horse abuser Ann Arnold received time served and will remain on probation for 3 years under an agreement stemming from a probation violation, District Attorney James Murphy III said.

The penalty meted out Monday in Providence Town Court comes a week after 59-year-old Arnold of Greenfield Center was again jailed for flouting the terms of her probation by possessing horses in violation of a court order.

Murphy said in an email before Arnold appeared in court Monday evening that he wants to ensure the safety of the horses.

He said that the probation department had confirmed that the new equines, who were healthy when they were discovered, are being kept at a barn and riding academy in Wilton. Arnold has paid for two months in advance to board and care for the animals, Murphy said.

Murphy said Arnold was also ordered to undergo mental health treatment.

In May, Greenfield Town Court Judge Michael Ginley barred Arnold from owning horses after a trial in which she was convicted of neglecting the animals, but it was the judge himself who saw 14 new animals on her property while driving by Arnold's Greenfield Center home several weeks ago.

Arnold's lawyers argued that she sold her land and ownership of the horses to her brother, and sent 11 of the horses to be boarded at another farm so she was not in violation of her probation.

Murphy disagreed, arguing Arnold was attempting to circumvent the law.

Because Ginley became a witness in the case, he recused himself and Providence Town Justice James Cummings took it up. Cummings sided with prosecutors and Arnold was sent to jail last month but was out in two days, according to the county Public Defender's Office.